Seasons Die Off One by One
Chapter 19 - Present (2012)
Each shot is dead center, dexterous fingers skillfully loading the bullet into the chamber before pulling the trigger in record speed. With a knowledge granted to him from dedicated practice of what must have been hours upon hours daily, Piers handles the gun in his hands like a true professional.
Brown eyes study the young Sniper beside him, the way the stock of the rifle is nestled against his shoulder, an exemplary hold on the gun that would leave any instructor more than impressed. The focus is clear on Piers' face, sight unwavering from the scope as he loads another bullet all from practiced ease. This is exactly how Piers had been when Chris first laid eyes on him all those years ago. Standing in the S.T.A.R.S shooting range with the rest of the team and holding up his own in the field with the best of the best.
After the last bullet hits its target, Piers lowers the rifle, hazel finally glancing over to meet brown, "So? That good enough for ya?"
"Impressive," Chris admits, a small grin making its way over his features. "You haven't lost your edge."
"Aside from a few weeks where I was dying to get my hands on a rifle again, not much time has passed, Captain," the Sniper responds before he adds. "For me, anyway."
"Your cockiness is still alive and well so I'll take your word for it," Chris chuckles.
Piers shoots him a grin before he's raising his gun again, but a gloved hand grabs the barrel of the rifle, prompting the Sniper to glance back over at the older man.
"My turn," Chris simply states before he lifts the weapon out of Piers' hands.
The Sniper steps back, letting Chris get into position, the older man lifting the rifle to his shoulder and taking aim. He pulls the trigger, the bullet soaring at speeds faster than the eye can follow as it penetrates the target, quickly followed by another, each shot released faster than the last, each hitting their mark in the center.
Chris glances over his shoulder at Piers, hazel scrutinizing the targets, but he can see the impression he left on the younger man's features.
"Am I giving you a run for your money yet?" the older man sports his own cocky grin, lifting the rifle and letting it rest on his massive shoulder.
Chris is a marksman, skilled with an assortment of weapons, from blades to machine guns and even bigger weapons. Rifles, however, had always been Piers' expertise. It had been the one weapon the younger man could hold over Chris' head, but over the years, the older man hasn't shied away from them, but rather he's grown fond of them, the reason standing right in front of him. Piers had barely ever been seen without his rifle, his guns sitting in the armory after he had vanished. Chris couldn't bear to just let them sit there. In a way, it had been a way to hold on to Piers, to understand the younger man. Each time he had disassembled the rifles, cleaning and oiling them, to then spend time putting them back together had been the closest he had felt to the man he ached to find no matter what the cost. Of course having Piers himself is what he had really wanted.
Piers bites his bottom lip, gaze flickering between the Captain and the targets before he lets the admission slip out, "Hell yeah."
Chris chuckles at that, "What kind of captain would I be if I can't even keep up with my own sniper?" It takes a moment for the words to settle in, but when they do, hazel widen, head whipping back so fast Chris fears he might have sprained something. "Count this as an informal interview for the sake of it. You've got the job, soldier."
The Sniper's mouth opens and closes, words seemingly escaping him for a moment, "Are you serious?"
"Do I look like I'm joking?" Chris inquires, lifting a brow at the younger man. "You wanted to join S.T.A.R.S again, right? You've obviously got the skills, so why not?"
The way Piers' face lights up would put holiday lights to shame, the sparkle in those hazel eyes directed at Chris making warmth bloom in the older man's chest. He's the one to put that smile on those youthful features.
"Thank you, Captain," Piers breathes out, the smile on his face unwavering, voice laced with gratitude and barely contained excitement. "Really, you have no idea how much this means to me."
"How about you call me Chris, then?" the older man tries, not surprised at the snort in response from the Sniper.
"No can do. You're definitely my captain now," the Sniper shakes his head, the wide grin still in place. "It feels a little weird though."
"I had to get used to it too," Chris admits before he turns to grab the case he had kept by his feet, placing it on the counter for Piers to see. He opens it to reveal the parts of a gun, shiny pieces carefully tucked into place. It takes less than a second for the Sniper to recognize it. It had been his after all.
Piers wordlessly looks at the weapon before his gaze finds its way up to Chris' face, brown already seeking out hazel. His thick stubble frames his jaw, all sharp angles with a contradictory softness in those brown orbs. Thin lips pulled into a small smile, the shadows accentuating his rugged handsome features.
First Piers' tactical vest, and now his anti-material rifle? Had Chris really held onto him for the past fourteen years?
Chris clears his throat before tearing his gaze away from mesmerizing green and gold orbs, pushing the case towards Piers, "It still packs a punch. Still haven't mastered it like you have, but then again, it is yours. Custom made for the Ace Sniper of S.T.A.R.S Alpha Team then...and now."
If Chris thought Piers' smile had been blinding before, there are no words to describe the high the Sniper had been walking on when he left the range, trusted anti-material rifle in his hands and with the title of S.T.A.R.S Alpha Team's Sniper. It had lasted him for two days, now slowly draining out of him as he fidgets in the passenger seat of Chris' truck on the way to the station.
Nothing could explain the moment when Piers walked into the kitchen that morning, dressed in his new S.T.A.R.S uniform, the beige color always suiting him best. It had been like the past, present, and future had come together in one moment, on one person. Still young and unchanged, Piers walked from the past into the present, and now Chris can finally see that there is a future as well. A future with Piers in it.
"Hey," Chris calls out, the Sniper turning his head away from the window at the sound of the older man's voice. "You'll be fine."
It's not like Piers to be so agitated, anxious even, but then again this is the younger man's first day with his new team, but never one to be deterred easily, not even by his own nerves, Piers hops out of the truck when they park and leads the way to the office, Chris trailing behind him with a smile threatening to spread across his features. This is the Piers he knows.
Chris wonders how long it will last as soon as they step in through the doors and all eyes are on them, well, on Piers to be exact. The room is silent, his unit taking in the new member. First impressions are pretty important and the captain can't help but wonder what could be going through their heads.
Just as the silence borders unbearable, one of them, the rookie Finn stands up, shy smile on his features as he shuffles awkwardly forward, "W-welcome to Alpha, I'm Finn. Finn Macauley."
"Piers Nivans," the Sniper returns the smile, taking Finn's hand gratefully.
After that it's surprisingly easy. The rest of the team, Carl, Ben, and Andy, amble forward, introducing themselves. Chris couldn't get the warmth spreading in chest to see his men reacting positively to Piers.
"Let me give you a tour of the station," Chris suggests, stepping up behind Piers and gaining the attention of the unit.
"I-I'll be happy to do it, captain!" Finn offers.
"It's fine, Finn. I got it," Chris chuckles. "How about we meet you boys out back?"
"Yes, sir," the rookie nods, the rest of the unit following suit.
Chris waits until they have filtered out before glancing over to the Sniper, the younger man shuffling his weight from one leg to the other. "You're doing great," he offers before gesturing for Piers to follow him, showing him around. "They were just a little shocked. You do look exactly the same as your missing flyers. Hearing about it and seeing it are two different things."
"Yeah, I figured as much," Piers nods, attentively cataloging the new office in his mind. It's bigger than the old building and packed with new technology the Sniper can't say he knows how to use yet.
The Sniper pauses for a moment when he reads the name off one of the doors, lowering his head and pushing forward, the nervousness settling in his bones again.
Jill Valentine.
Chris leads Piers out to the back, the rest of the team stopping from their usual routine to acknowledge the Captain.
"How about we get in some practice?" Chris suggests before he gestures for Andy to hand over his rifle. The captain turns to Piers then, winking at him. "Show 'em what you've got."
His team may have welcomed Piers, but that doesn't necessarily mean he's one of them just yet. He won't be, not after at least an operation or two but the Captain knows what can help set them on that track. The younger man needs to earn their respect. Needs to show them there is a reason why Chris has brought him into the unit. The older man has no doubt in Piers' skills and when the Sniper grabs the rifle, shifting into that professional headspace where it's just him, the rifle, and the target, Chris knows his men won't have a doubt either.
0o0
She can feel the heat seeping into the room despite the cool air filtering into the air. Can feel the glass hot against her skin but she doesn't move, blue eyes trained on the field down below. Jill's full bottom lip is pinched between her teeth, the metallic taste on her tongue prompting her to release it.
Chris is down there, the proud smile he wears on his face harder to look at than the rays of the sun, his unit crowding around the newest addition of their team as he demonstrates his marksmanship skills.
A knock at her door draws her attention, brows furrowing as she wonders just who would come see her, but the voice behind the door calling her name doesn't come as a surprise to her. She should have known.
"Come in," Jill calls out, a moment passing before Parker Luciani opens the door, poking his shaggy head in.
"Hey Jill, got those reports you needed," he smiles, stepping in when she nods at him, walking over and placing them on her desk.
He turns to leave, pausing when he notices Jill's attention is out the window again, the way she leans against the side of the window informing Parker that the woman may have been there for a while. He crosses the office over to her, stepping up to the window and catching sight of Alpha Team down on the field below. He doesn't have to look long to figure out just who has Jill's attention.
"So that's him, huh?" Parker muses, but it's less a question and more a statement. Everyone in the office knows who Piers is. "Chris' old flame."
That last part makes Jill blink, registering the words before she turns to look at Parker. "He's not an old flame…" the blonde woman starts before she catches herself.
Former lover. Past love. Lost love. Isn't that what an old flame is? Jill's gaze returns to the field, lingering on the S.T.A.R.S captain. It feels like so long ago since the moment Jill first laid eyes on Chris Redfield. Talented and resourceful, yet arrogant and problematic, especially when it came to authority, but even so, no one could deny his sense of justice and the skills that backed him up. He was easy to get along with, Jill one of the first to befriend him after Barry, but then again the man had known Chris since long before. She had been drawn to him, unable to look any other way and for a while there, she had taught Chris had felt the same, that is, until Piers joined the team. It's like if the rookie had caught Chris by the mouth and never let go. Jill doesn't know if she had hated him then. She doesn't know if she does now.
Despite her resentment, genuine fear and worry ran through her veins that night that impacted them all. He may have taken Chris for himself, but that didn't mean she wanted him to just vanish. To disappear like if he had never existed. The confusion of what happened to Piers, what he could be going through weighed too heavily on her for the blonde woman to hate him then. She would never have wished that for Piers, even if in the end Chris eventually turned to her, because despite her attempts to convince herself that things may turn out how they are meant to be, they never worked out for her.
Chris had still been his. Still unreachable and distant in the worse way possible. The first few weeks had the worst. Chris had been consumed with the grief and need to find Piers, searching day in and day out, every minute of every hour. Jill had expected that, tried to support him even, going out on searched for the Sniper. She never expected that sorrow to last the whole year, then the next and the one after that. Jill could only be a friend then and with the way Chris had been suffering, she respected that. She honestly hadn't even thought of more, much less pursued, but then time passed. Two years turned into five, then ten and by Chris had still managed to remain in her life. No, more like she had still managed to remain in Chris' life.
Jill didn't know how to feel when Chris had called her that night weeks ago, voice shaking and threatening to break as he repeated one phrase over and over again: I found him. I found him. Years of trying and only after a few months of finally having Chris wrap his arms around her he reappears.
But that's selfish. Awful. Heartless. Jill didn't allow herself to think that way. Instead she does what she always has, rushing to the hospital, heart in her throat with real concern over the news and when she got there, her eyes immediately sought out Chris, because if there had been one thing certain about Chris, it was that he wasn't going to be alright. He didn't see her, his attention solely on the young man surrounded by the investigators and medical staff. His gaze never wavered from the youth, the young man that had stayed exactly the same despite the passage of years.
Never giving up. Always searching. Chris had so much love for Piers. So much love that Jill wondered why there wouldn't be enough for her too. She wants to be loved that way. A fairy tale romance of a love that withstands the tests of time. She had been living on borrowed time, on a love that would never be hers, and when the owner finally returned to claim what belonged to him, Jill had refused to give it back. She's still reluctant, but how can she give back something that she never had in the first place?
Chris doesn't love her. Appreciate her, yes. Grateful for everything she's done for him, yes. Love her dearly as a friend, companion, yes. But to be IN love with her, that's another matter. How is she supposed to compete with that? It hurts to realize there had never been a competition to begin with and when she had come to terms with that, she made sure to tell Chris. Not in those words exactly, but she said what she could over the lump sitting in her throat.
"He's not an old flame," Jill repeats to herself, the words slipping past her lips. "They would have had to have ended things in order for him to be that." Out of the corner of her eye, the blonde woman can see Parker cross his arms over his chest, the same way he always does when a topic has piqued his interest. Jill saves him the trouble of asking. "Piers disappeared. Just like that. Vanished. Everything was left in the open like that. No closure."
"I would assume that after fourteen years apart things would have ended," Parker comments, gaze fixed on her.
"Anyone would," Jill agrees. "But not for them. At least, not for Chris. It's always been Piers. Since the beginning, the way he would look at Piers, I'd never seen him direct it at someone else. Never. Not even once in the fourteen years Piers has been missing." She's not sure why she's telling Parker all of this, but she supposes it must be because she just needs someone to listen to her for once. Maybe it's because she needs to hear the words spoken for herself. "I wanted to see it, that look in his eyes that said you meant the world to him. I wanted it directed at me. I never thought I'd see it again, directed at anyone." Jill purses her lips, pointing at the field, Parker following her gaze to see the S.T.A.R.S captain, "That look right there, it's the same one. It's always been for him."
Parker watches in silence for a few moments before he looks back at Jill, but the woman's gaze remains transfixed on Chris. On the man she realizes had never really been hers. It's sad to say that same look in Chris' eyes when he looks at the Sniper is the same one in her eyes right now. It's even sadder to say that Parker knows exactly how she feels since he himself wishes that look in her eyes would be directed at him.
It's never that easy.
0o0
It's practically the only thing in his closet aside from a handful of clothes Claire had helped him get. Piers lets his hand linger on the uniform, the S.T.A.R.S logo prominently displayed on the sleeve. Same beige color, same style, same measurements, yet Piers knows it's not the same. It can never be.
"Piers!" Chris' voice filters from the living room, the Sniper stepping back and closing his closet before raising his voice so that the older man can hear him.
"Yeah?"
"Come here. Wanna show you something."
Piers obeys, walking into the living room to find Chris sitting on the couch, hunched over the laptop on the coffee table. The older man glances back at him, gesturing for the Sniper to come closer before he leans back, revealing a familiar face on the screen.
Piers blinks, pausing mid-step, "Claire?"
"Yup, it's me," the younger Redfield smiles, waving at the Sniper. Piers furrows his brow, tentatively waving back. "I can see you."
"Oh, wow," Piers breathes out, sinking down onto the couch beside the S.T.A.R.S captain, hazel eyes transfixed on the glowing screen.
"I know, amazing, isn't it? You should have seen how long it took Chris to get the hang of video calls," Claire chuckles, earning a soft snort from the older man. "I heard the news! I'm happy you're back in S.T.A.R.S. How did it go?"
"Oh," the young man grins, impressed by how far technology has come. "It went pretty well I gotta say. Got to meet the team and got a tour of the new station. It felt good to be back."
"That's great," the redhead smiles before she turns and gestures for someone off-screen to come over. "I actually wanted you to meet someone. This is Steve."
A young man looking about the same age as Claire steps into view, the younger Redfield shifting to the side to allow the Sniper a better view of the man. Ah, so this is the fiancé. Dark blonde hair swept to the side messily, dark green eyes with a hint of maturity that hadn't been there when Piers had first laid eyes on the guy fourteen years ago. The Ace recognizes him, having gone with Chris and Claire to his trial. He remembers Chris had been upset about the ordeal since Claire had been in danger and how much worse it had been when he found out Claire had been visiting him at the prison.
"Piers, right?" Steve offers him a small grin. "Heard a lot about ya. It's nice to finally meet ya."
"I can only imagine," the Sniper mutters more to himself than to the man. "It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Steve."
"Damn, they really weren't exaggerating when they said you haven't changed one bit," Steve chuckles, but Piers can hear the skepticism in his voice. He's used to it by now because really, fourteen years is a lot of time and Piers is an exact cut-out of the photograph printed on those missing flyers. The Sniper can't blame the guy.
"Just to set the record straight, we only started dating after Steve was released from jail," Claire smiles, resting her head on Steve's shoulder playfully.
Piers glances over at Chris, the older man leaning back on the couch and looking completely at ease. He supposes the older Redfield had the time necessary to wrap his head around his sister marrying an ex-convict. Steve had been summoned for trial around the time Piers had disappeared, so the Sniper supposes he managed to appeal his case or something. He'll trust Claire to fill him in on the details later. Right now, she's busy going on and on about the wedding set in a few months.
It's nice to hear about the wedding. It's a nice change from being told about what he's missed, like everyone living their lives without him, new careers or what not. Truth be told, those conversations leave him feeling left out even though he knows that's not anyone's intention, but the fact remains that they all have fourteen years' worth of stories to tell. This is one thing he hasn't missed and the Sniper is looking forward to it. Looking forward to living in this new present and becoming a part of the future. He still wants to go back to his time, misses it dearly, but now he can at least think of this predicament he's stuck in and not feel like if he's suffocating. It's not so bleak anymore and he can finally think that it's not that bad.
He's back in S.T.A.R.S. A purpose handed back to him with that anti-material rifle. And he's back in the lives of the people he cares about. Claire, Leon, Barry and especially Chris. He doesn't particularly want to start over again, but if he must, then he's glad that what had mattered most to him is returning to him. Not everything has, the void the death of his parents created in him still hurts. The fact that he never got the chance to make things right with them making it even worse, but that's exactly why he can't wait. Not this time.
Piers' gaze lingers on Chris long enough for the older man to notice, turning his head so that brown meeting hazel.
"Something wrong?" the older man inquires, furrowing his brow in question.
Piers is quick to answer, "No."
"Hey guys, are you listening to me?" Claire pouts, leaning forward into the screen like if doing so will help her get a closer look at them.
"Yeah," Piers nods, his attention returning to the redhead, a small smile spreading across his features.
Piers is going to step out of his ghost and begin to live again. He can. He can and will if Chris is beside him.
Disclaimer: RE isn't mine.
Author's Note: So Piers is finally making progress, trying to establish himself in this future time. You go Piers! Don't worry, Chris has your back till the end. Also, not to worry, the full story on Steve will be revealed soon :3
Thank you for reading!